Outside outlet

[rvr6000]

Does an outside outlet need to be GFCI if it's controlled by the same switch as the front porch light? I would assume it would. Got a guy coming out tomorrow AM to do a time of sale inspection on the house before we put it on the market. I never use that outlet and just now while I was shoveling the front walk I took a look at it.....just a standard outlet - no GFCI. Still have time to change it luckily.

 

[RunninOnEmpty]

Absolutely. The only way you might not need a GFCI outlet is if the circuit has a GFCI device before that outlet, such as a GFCI breaker. Any outlet that might come in contact with water must be protected by GFCI, period.

Fortunately they're only about $15. Possibly even less.

 

[rvr6000]

Yea, that's what I was thinking. I bought the house about 14 years ago....funny how they missed that back then. Off to Home Depot....at least it stopped snowing.

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

Depending on how picky the inspector is the gfi should be tamper resistant and marked WR.(weather resistant)
It should also be under a domed in use cover.

 

[kd3pc]

Depending on how picky the inspector is the gfi should be tamper resistant and marked WR.(weather resistant)
It should also be under a domed in use cover.

This ^

In almost every jurisdiction any more....you just never know when one of the lesser amongst us, will attempt to compromise the outlet, hurt him/herself and then sue you the homeowner for negligence or worse.

 

[JRC3]

How old is the home? Around here it's pretty common to pull the power for outside outlets from a GFI outlet located in the garage, basement, bathroom, or somewhere else inside the home. Go test pop any GFI outlets you have to see if it kills the power to the outside outlet.

 

[Dick in Wisconsin]

My outside outlets are wired to the GFCI in the bathroom. Get one of those circuit testers from the hardware store:

http://www.soscleanroom.com/product...KqOqpTDDjyd85MDPktLkZEi5bFUlZib8yYaAsJP8P8HAQ

If you press the button it will probably through a GFCI outlet somewhere else in the house. You might as well test all the CFI circuits with this device and all your outlets. A couple of the home inspectors I've watched check every outlet for polarity and for proper GFI protection.

 

[RunninOnEmpty]

meh, I say skip wasting time seeing if your house is wired up stupidly (yeah yeah I know older houses were like that - my last house was built in 1969 and the front outside outlet shared a circuit with the sump pump, dishwasher, some lights, and more -- and yes that was corrected) and just throw the GFCI outlet in there.

Doesn't hurt to have 2.

 

[CNGsaves]

Most older homes are "grandfathered" for those porch outside outlets, for purposes of selling the house in my experience.

My 1955 house has several outdoor outlets (old school, no GFCI and no dome coverbox) that went right through realtor sale couple years ago.

However, for YOUR situation, can't hurt to at least install the GFCI as doubt they'll squawk about "missing" dome coverbox.

Is this a Buyer's Inspection . . . or some sort of Seller's Inspection that you're doing proactively ??

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

Most older homes are "grandfathered" for those porch outside outlets, for purposes of selling the house in my experience.

My 1955 house has several outdoor outlets (old school, no GFCI and no dome coverbox) that went right through realtor sale couple years ago.

However, for YOUR situation, can't hurt to at least install the GFCI as doubt they'll squawk about "missing" dome coverbox.

Is this a Buyer's Inspection . . . or some sort of Seller's Inspection that you're doing proactively ??

It depends on when the house was built and how smart your home inspector is.
Ive seen them walk right past serious code violations just to pick out something incredibly stupid.

 

[thewatusi]

If you're local municipality requires a resale inspection then it's up to the AHJ as to whether stuff like this is needed.

But if it's jo-shmo home inspector being nitpicky on a bunch of bs items just to justify his $500 fee that he charged the buyer, tell him to eat a ****.

 

[Speedy Petey]

It depends on when the house was built and how smart your home inspector is.
Ive seen them walk right past serious code violations just to pick out something incredibly stupid.

It's not up to a HI to do a "code" inspection. It's up to them to justify their fee.

If this home was built/sold 14 years ago TR and WR receptacles did not exist and were NOT required, so in a legal sense they are NOT required today. Codes are not retroactive.
This is not to say a H-I will not call it out as "defective" since current code requires it.

Hell, if the home were old enough even it being non-GFCI protected could still be 100% code legal.

 

[Elginz]

It's not up to a HI to do a "code" inspection. It's up to them to justify their fee.

If this home was built/sold 14 years ago TR and WR receptacles did not exist and were NOT required, so in a legal sense they are NOT required today. Codes are not retroactive.
This is not to say a H-I will not call it out as "defective" since current code requires it.

Hell, if the home were old enough even it being non-GFCI protected could still be 100% code legal.

As a former H I, I would inspect for, value, safety, and something else I can't remember.
I would have called it a safety issue. It is not defective, and it is age appropriate to the home, however that would not mean it is safe, it would be a safety item in my report.

 

[tfi racing]

It depends on when the house was built and how smart your home inspector is.
Ive seen them walk right past serious code violations just to pick out something incredibly stupid.

Leave it alone if it is original to the time the house was built,this non-issue may distract the bumbling home inspector enough that he walks by other glaring deficiencies...

 

[Makoto]

im putting my outside compressor outlet and everything on that wall ona GFCI circuit just to be safe, even though its all going to be covered.

 

[mikegt4]

It's not up to a HI to do a "code" inspection. It's up to them to justify their fee.

If this home was built/sold 14 years ago TR and WR receptacles did not exist and were NOT required, so in a legal sense they are NOT required today. Codes are not retroactive.
This is not to say a H-I will not call it out as "defective" since current code requires it.

Hell, if the home were old enough even it being non-GFCI protected could still be 100% code legal.

True,,,but a good HI will at least report it as a catch all "safety issue" and a buyer will most likely insist that it be upgraded to current or near current code as part of their offer. Of course the seller can refuse and possibly lose the sale. Ask me how I know.

 

[william.m.hamilton2]

I had to replace my outside cover at an old place I rented. F-tard nieghbors were using it with two extension cords split out to run heaters in thier house when they failed to pay the propane man. Caught it within a couple days. Unfortunately it was on the same breaker as my outside lights- so I got a cover that allowed a pad lock. Put a sleigh bell out of the cristmas box on the padlock so I would hear if people played with it- never had problems again.

 

[justin1795]

not worth messing with yet. if the inspector fails it you can always change it then. my old house the buyer paid cash and never had a inspector.

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

It's not up to a HI to do a "code" inspection. It's up to them to justify their fee.

If this home was built/sold 14 years ago TR and WR receptacles did not exist and were NOT required, so in a legal sense they are NOT required today. Codes are not retroactive.
This is not to say a H-I will not call it out as "defective" since current code requires it.

Hell, if the home were old enough even it being non-GFCI protected could still be 100% code legal.

By the way I voted for you over on the electrical site.

 

[rvr6000]

So just to enforce my long standing notion that there's no such thing as a 10 minute job....

I take the cover off the outlet in front. However many years ago when they resided the house someone decided to cut a hole in a piece of siding and just screw the outlet to the steel rather than replace or extend the original box. I wish I had taken a picture of this mess yesterday. So here's an outlet sticking almost 2 inches out from the original box, screwed to metal siding with the back of the outlet resting against the original wood siding. Did I mention there was some evidence of charred wood on the siding? Not even any tape around the poles....Holy ****, well, even if the inspector doesn't catch that I know I can't leave that the way it is.

I think the only thing that has saved me these last fourteen years is that outlet was on the same switch as the front light and I almost never use the front light. I take out the outlet, snip the ends off the wires, add a couple wire nuts and stuff them way back into the box. Inside I open up the box and remove that wire from the switch, wire nut that and stuff it back in then added a water sealed cover over the old hole in the siding.

 

[Falcon67]

LOL - I extended the back porch outlet last year to put another outlet by the pool pump. At least it's on a GFCI circuit. When I pulled the weather cover on the porch, the outlet was just in a hole cut in the OSB siding and screwed to the siding. Original to the house - nice. House was built in 2000 - not a single GFCI in the garage and the front porch outlet was not GFCI. That's all corrected, but someone really cheaped out back then.